This issue is an absolute treat. But then again, EVERY issue in this series has been. Cockfighting, undercover homeboys, and a great cliffhanger (for those who’ve read the whole series) make this issue one of my favorites. If you’re still sleeping on Chew, wake up! -Scott

Chew #12

Invincible #74

Sure the costumes belong in something from the ’90′s and its yet another intergalactic war, but there’s something about Kirkman’s writing that makes it all personal.

Think about a Spielberg film, no matter what kind of subject matter he’s covering, he always manages to highlight and explore the human element, the single perspective from which this event will be explored.  Same thing here with Invincible.  It’d be easy to take this on like a Star Wars story and tell a tale of woe for galactic civilizations, a rich history dotted with conflicts, empires grinding against one another.

But this story, this instance of brilliance, is really about a father and his two sons.  The elder, the leader, and the younger, still learning the ropes as to how to be a hero.  The art is at it’s usual excellent level and the action sequences are fast paced and well laid out.

My only complaint is that it took so long for #74 to come out.  No more delays please. -Bretzke

Spawn #198

It’s been forever since I’ve read Spawn.  I collected it as a junior in high school but fell off the wagon when angels got involved.  At least that’s how I remember it.  The striking cover drew me back in for this issue.  I always enjoyed the tormented nature of Spawn; stuck between his hellish origins and his need for information, to do good, to understand.

Dipping a toe back in the waters of McFarlane, the first thing that strikes after such a long absence is the change in art style.  Sure, its McFarlane-esque, but it’s not him, it lacks the grit and exaggeration that he did so well with Spawn and his run on Spider-Man, back in the day.  Having said that, the pages just pop with pleasing layouts and just enough comic-ness to make you feel at home leafing through.  Importantly, when the chips are down, Spawn still looks like he always did, with that possessed cape doing it’s own bidding and such sharp contrasting angles.  Fantastic.

Jumping in mid story (or so it appears) there is going to be a learning curve.  Reading the inside of the cover was a must, though somewhat tricky as page one had strippers – go figure.  The fragment of story that is explored is satisfying, sure there’s a greater dramatic thing going on, but this issue stands alone as an entertaining piece.  I turned the last page, explored the “Making of” bit at the back and wanted more.

I think Spawn has to go back on my card at Daily Planet. -Bretzke

Hack/Slash: My First Maniac #3

Introductions are over: Cassie Hack kills bad people.  They deserve to eat it.

The series is starting to heat up with it’s second maniac, don’t let the title deceive you.  It’s all about teenagers in mortal peril and one outsider’s struggle to defend those who would otherwise leave her in their dust.  It’s a well written and paced piece with suitable climactic potential.  You will be surprised, but that’s what these stories are about.  Certainly the premise behind this particular slasher is a little far fetched, but they all are, aren’t they?

The art is picture perfect for what this book is trying to be – B grade horror.  There’s a little T&A with plenty more blood and gore.  This one checks all the boxes for the genre it’s pitched at.

While this book certainly isn’t for everyone and you wouldn’t leave it lying around with a cover like that, there’s a niche audience out there that’s just going to lap this up.  Two bloody, severed thumbs up. -Bretzke

Morning Glories #1

Let me open like this… Damn you Image!

Let me explain.  Morning Glories is a story about a school.  This isn’t X-Academy or something about freaky Avengers.  This is much, much worse.  Remember those horror films about the new kid in class but the whole school seems kinda off kilter?  Like the recent solo run for Nomad.  This is what Morning Glories is; a school with a hidden past.

Now rather than draw this out over a series of issues to some climax that the school is actually run by Nazis, Morning Glories lets you know right up that something isn’t right.  No spoilers, but don’t check the back page before you read this book.

Stories about schools aren’t new but they’re popular; we’ve all been to one and have our own horror stories.  For this to work there needs to be a connection with the audience.  Feelings of isolation, rejection and sexual exploration are touched on in this book while the characters are developed.  By the end of #1 you know where everyone is at and can see the start of a road ahead.  A rocky, precipitous road that may or may not end in a gaping chasm.

The art is functional to the story, at times too rough or with too much digitally enabled copy/paste but this is a minor distraction, this book isn’t going to attract art buffs, it’s more for the story nerd.

Morning Glories tells a tale about an experimental school doing questionable things.  My only question is why aren’t you reading it?  It’s really good!  Damn you Image for making another addictive title.  -Bretzke

Hack/Slash: My First Maniac #2

With any reboot to a franchise there is always a risk of alienating your existing audience for the chance at a new one.  Hack/Slash has done this well by not so much ignoring previous continuity as stepping around it, writing into the spaces that were never fully explored.  The move to Image publication has been seamless, the only real difference being a different logo at the top left, though who really looks at those?

Casey Hack is looking to start afresh.  She knows she’s going to hunt down psychotic killers like her mother was, slashers, but she’s at a loose end as to where to start.  A chance encounter where she saves a young man through precise application of some beautiful ash allows her to enter a school and be at one with the demonic hordes: students.

See, this is true to slasher thinking, a slasher will always go for the young in an area, Casey is just trying to assimilate herself with the bait.  If only she didn’t do it so well.   The town in question has an old tale about a farmer who was very protective of his daughter… Pitch forks and razor blades, this is not going to end well.

Excellent artwork, delivering just a little more gore than we’re used to, enough to set you on edge when you realize the tantalizing opportunities for mischief it presents.  Scarecrow from the Wizard of Oz never had it this bad.  Read the issue, you’ll get my joke. -Bretzke

Invincible #74.

With all the build up established in the previous issue, along with Invincible’s entrails strewn across the planetary surface, you’d think this issue would establish and deliver more.  Sadly it doesn’t.

The book presents two stories side by side; one of a build war, another of a father and son building a new relationship.  If you are expecting drama or sadness at the plight of Invincible then you’re going to be disappointed.  You see what was the heights of drama at the end of #73 is washed away with a tied on cape and a “Oh he’ll be fine, just give him a few months to heal”.  That’s the kind of reaction we’re talking.

Over those few months, father and distant son forge a bond over consumed alien carcass, all while Invincible heals under a bloodied bandage, and the Viltrumite War forges on, missions are fought and a campaign is progressed.  While this all sounds very vague, it is precisely what is described and about as interesting.

If you are a seasoned Invincible fan, you’ve already picked this up and come to similar conclusions.  If not, wait for the next one, there may be some actual drama. -Bretzke

Hack/Slash #1

When revisiting the past, is there anything for those who walked it the first time?  Civilizations erect monuments to great events in history so we can remember, but is it necessary to do the same for moments in a fictional history?  They say to answer a question with another question is impolite, niceties be damned, we’re talking about Cassie Hack!

Hack/Slash has made the jump from DDP to Image, a move likely to generate more coverage.  To coincide with this divergence, there is a new story arc afoot for the Hackerites to enjoy.  This time, it’s a story of beginnings.  Now, it’s fair to say that if you know Cassie at all, you know what went down between her and her mother.  Suffice to say there’s one less holiday she sends a card on.  However the actual events were never covered in this much detail.

We opened with the thoughts of covering old ground, can it be entertaining or worthy?  The latest Batman franchise should suggest to us that an origin story, even for a well known character, can generate entertaining outcomes.  The same can be said for Hack/Slash.  My initial thoughts wavered somewhere over doom and or gloom, thinking that this would just be old content re-branded.  Thankfully this is far from the case.

This feels like vintage Hack/Slash and Tim Seeley is to be commended for bringing a fresh face to a well loved franchise.  If you see this one on the shelves you should grab it.  Sure, it’s about disemboweling the slashers, but they started it! -Bretzke

Invincible #72

This comic is not to be read by the faint of heart.  There are moments in these pages that I would shudder to show to anyone south of 15 years.  No, make that 18 years.  Gore has it’s place in printed medium and I support all efforts towards freedom of expression.  There are also boundaries.  This book pushes them.

Granted a level of this response may be due to the power of the book in and of itself.  Invincible is you or me given different situations and choices (and parental lineages).  The close-look style of the narrative and almost suburban feel we have for the characters generates a level of empathy that is hard to replicate amongst other titles.  With that in mind, the pounding that our beloved receives can only be described as catastrophic.

Invincible has gone out to fight a war he knows little of, relying on his sense of duty and a need to fill his place in the greater universe.  Had he known what was coming, I’m sure he would have stayed home and hung up his costume.  Is this a challenging book?  Yes.

Is it on my must read list?  Absolutely. -Bretzke

Turf #1

If I told you about a comic book involving gangsters, vampires and aliens, you’d likely think I was reading some kind of trash from the 90′s that rightly deserved to stay there.  No, we’re talking of Turf.  A noir-esque tale of gansters and prohibition in 1930′s America.  All the key elements are present, tough talking mob bosses, thug like goons, black saloon cars, dames from the press with too much curiosity and a dwelling sense of inky darkness.

Against this backdrop, add in a group of immigrants like no other: European noble Vampires.  They come with the same promise as all other immigrants of the time: a fresh chance at a new life.  Sadly for these phlebotomists their chance at a new life may involve taking many others.  They wish to also gain some level of control in the local crime market, and of course that’s not going down well with the local establishment.

Not an entirely implausible scenario, at least within comic bookery.  Now insert an intergalactic smuggler (Not this one) who is about to get his butt kicked by the authorities.  The subsequent crash occurs near the culmination of a gang war between the established and imported nefarious nellies.  The entirety of the book, from this description would border on the ludicrous, if it not so well written and told.

In essence, this book is about breaking rules.  Each of the 3 camps described is somehow dealing with the process of betrayal and renewal, be it a change of territory, of clan leader or altitude.  Consequences are being dealt out as a result of changes brought about by the protagonists.  Action begets results.

Were this written at all differently the book would be a laughing stock and easily make my “Worst so far…” title, but there is an element here, a spark which makes the entire experience compelling.  It all comes down to characterization.  The book feels huge for it’s number of pages, we learn so much about each party that’s involved that by the end of the last page you are left with a feeling of the epic.

I want to know what happens, I need to know how this goes down.  I don’t care that it sounds insane, but Gansters vs Vampires vs Aliens has all of my attention. -Bretzke